I don't agree - how many people use multiple desk overviews in a
windowing environment or multiple web browser windows? Each browser or
windows is a different view with essentially a different
role. Certainly there are times when you want to focus mainly on one
task, but even then you may want to aware of and interrupted by other
possible interactions such as incoming phone calls or email messages.
I haven't played MUDS for a long while, but a friend says that she
does use multiple views, but rarely does the same sort of task in
each. One might be a character role, but another other a wizard
(editing) role and another a go game. On a similar note Ivor Benjamin
and I were once talking about how expert improvisers might be able to
handle four or more narratives at a time, but a novice might only
manage one. For this reason there may be an aspect of training
involved when using multiple views - I still sometimes set tasks going
in windows on other desks and then completely forget about them unless
they indicate when they have finished. For example ncftp beeps at me
when it has finished and I hear it no matter which desk I am currently
viewing.
Some of the interesting issues will be how you reconcile multiple
views into one coherent (immersive?) environment. Since these
environments are excluding, how do you indicate what is interesting in
another environment (do you get a virtual phone call? a door appears
and a ghost of you other self comes to get you? you find yourself
suddenly caught in a virtual spotlight when your presence is required
in an another story?).
Anthony
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Anthony Steed A.Steed@cs.ucl.ac.uk